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Air Fryer Pork Belly Bites

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Crispy, caramelized pork belly bites cooked in the air fryer with a deeply golden crust and tender, melt-in-your-mouth interior. Optionally finished with a sticky honey-garlic glaze.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 lbs fresh pork belly, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 1½ teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon five-spice powder (optional)
  • For the Honey-Garlic Glaze (optional):
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
  • Pinch of red pepper flakes

Instructions

  1. If using skin-on pork belly, score the skin in a crosshatch pattern with a sharp knife before cubing to allow fat to render and skin to crisp.
  2. Combine all dry seasonings in a large bowl. Add pork belly cubes and toss thoroughly to coat all surfaces. Let rest at room temperature for 20–30 minutes for best results (dry brine).
  3. Preheat air fryer to 400°F (204°C) for 3 minutes. Arrange pork belly cubes in a single layer without crowding. Cook for 22–25 minutes, flipping at the 10-minute and 17-minute marks, until deeply golden and internal temperature reaches 145°F (63°C).
  4. Optional glaze: While pork belly finishes cooking, combine honey, soy sauce, minced garlic, rice vinegar, and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium heat for 3–4 minutes until slightly thickened.
  5. Optional glaze finish: Remove pork belly bites from air fryer, toss in glaze, then return to air fryer at 380°F for 5 minutes until the glaze is caramelized and lacquered onto each bite.

Notes

Add 2 tablespoons of water to the bottom drip tray before cooking to prevent fat drippings from smoking on the heating element.

Pat pork belly cubes completely dry before seasoning for maximum crispiness — surface moisture is the enemy of a good crust.

Cook in single-layer batches if your air fryer is small; crowded cubes will steam each other instead of crisping.

Clean the drip tray between batches — accumulated fat from the first batch will smoke aggressively during the second.

Find it online: https://airfrycentral.com/air-fryer-pork-belly-bites/